Many people don’t realize that they may face serious wildfire danger. But if your clients live in the foothills, grasslands or mountains of states like Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, or Wyoming, they are at risk.

According to the Colorado State Forest Service (CSFS), for homeowners living in areas at high risk for wildfires, there are number of pre-fire activities that will decrease the likelihood of property damage and loss. How a house is designed, where it is built, materials used in its construction and landscape, and access to the home all influence survivability during wildfire.

Also, the CSFS offers some guidelines for homeowners about what specific actions to take when a wildfire is an immediate threat.

1. Construction

Homeowners should build their home with fire-resistant building mateirals and away from ridge tops, canyons and areas between high points on a ridge.

Many people don’t realize that they may face serious wildfire danger. But if your clients live in the foothills, grasslands or mountains of states like Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, or Wyoming, they are at risk.

According to the Colorado State Forest Service (CSFS), for homeowners living in areas at high risk for wildfires, there are number of pre-fire activities that will decrease the likelihood of property damage and loss. How a house is designed, where it is built, materials used in its construction and landscape, and access to the home all influence survivability during wildfire.

Also, the CSFS offers some guidelines for homeowners about what specific actions to take when a wildfire is an immediate threat.

1. Construction

Homeowners should build their home with fire-resistant building mateirals and away from ridge tops, canyons and areas between high points on a ridge.

You’ve received one too many speeding tickets, lost your job and didn’t pay your car insurance premiums, or got drunk and crashed your car.

What will that mean when it comes to insuring your vehicle?

These things are considered serious violations by your auto insurer, and you could see your rates soar—perhaps even doubling as a result, says David Suarez, director of marketing at Mercury Insurance, headquartered in Los Angeles.

“It’s not unusual to assume someone with a DUI would pay twice as much for insurance as someone without a DUI, all things being equal,” Suarez says.

While letting your insurance policy lapse may seem far different than driving under the influence, both could result in you being considered a high-risk driver by your car insurer. Having several moving violations or accidents in a three-year time period also will put you in the high-risk category.

Not surprisingly, model year 2015 sports cars and convertibles that sell for more than $100,000 and can reach speeds of up to 200 mph are the most expensive cars to insure, according to a new study from Insure.com.

These vehicles are very powerful and very expensive to repair and replace. They often combine parts made of carbon fiber and other exotic materials with expensive engines that can crank out 500 horsepower or more, says Insure.com. Cars like these typically appeal more to men, who usually face higher premiums.

Insure.com commissioned Quadrant Information Services to calculate average auto insurance rates for 2015 models by examining insurance rates from Allstate, Farmers, GEICO, Nationwide, Progressive, and State Farm for more than 1,500 vehicle models in every state. The rates were based on full coverage for a singe 40-year-old male with a clean record and good credit who commutes 12 miles to work every day, with policy limits of $100,000 for injury liability for one person, $300,000 for all injuries, and $50,000 for property damage in an accident, as well as a $500 deductible on collision and comprehensive coverage.

 New York’s 33 public housing developments will get $3 billion from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, its largest grant ever, to repair damage from Hurricane Sandy and to protect against a future storm.

About 80,000 tenants will benefit from more secure lobbies in buildings equipped with better lighting, security cameras, boilers and electrical equipment, said Mayor Bill de Blasio, who was joined by U.S Senator Charles Schumer in announcing the grant Tuesday at a housing development in the Red Hook section of Brooklyn.

“We had the devastation of Sandy, but it gave us the capital to rebuild parts of NYCHA better than before,” Schumer told reporters, referring to the Housing Authority by its acronym. “Even people not affected by Sandy, their lives are going to be made much better.”

The October 2012 storm killed at least 40 in the city, and sent water surging through Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and Manhattan, flooding thousands of homes, subway lines and vehicle tunnels.